June Comments
2016

A retired RUC
detective has told the Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry that
when he started looking into events at Kincora Boys Home, the then
Chief Constable Sir Jack Hermon told him to leave "no stone
unturned".

Former
Detective Chief Superintendent George Caskey was giving evidence at
the ongoing hearing in Banbridge.

He led the
Kincora Inquiries from 1980-1985.

Six people
were imprisoned for sexual abuse as a result of his team's
work.Joseph Mains,
Raymond Semple and William McGrath were jailed for abusing boys at
Kincora.

George
Caskey's statement to the Inquiry said that before he was brought
in to examine Kincora, the Police had had "many potential missed
opportunities to detect the offences which my team
uncovered."

There have
been claims that some within the RUC knew about the abuse years
before it was formally investigated.

Mr Caskey
retired in 1996 with 39 years experience as a policeman and
detective.

The PSNI has
made all the 26 boxes of material relating to his investigations
into Kincora available to the Inquiry.

Mr Caskey said
he believed his team could not have done more to ensure the victims
of Kincora were able to speak freely and fully.

His team later
investigated the allegations made of cover ups and involvement of
the intelligence services with the abuse in the home.

He said he was
never put under pressure not to question anyone, be they "leading
politicians,

Orange Order
members, churchmen, men engaged in homosexual activity in Belfast,
men said to be interested in children."

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 30th, 2016 @ 11:28
AM

2/2...He
told the inquiry that he did not find any evidence that an
individual had tried to cover up what was happening in
Kincora.

By cover up,
he said he meant that they knew boys were being abused and did some
act to try to hide it.

He also said
he found no evidence of "prominent/establishment figures coming
into Kincora to abuse boys or taking boys out for that
purpose."

He concluded
there was no evidence of some state-run operation to promote or
facilitate sexual offences in Kincora for some intelligence
gathering or other purpose.

He said this
was born out by the evidence of the victims to whom he
spoke.

He made the
point that many allegations had been made by the former
intelligence officer Colin Wallace, but that Mr Wallace had never
really cooperated with his inquiry team.

Mr Wallace was
in prison at the time for a crime for which he was later cleared
and his conviction quashed.

Mr Caskey did
say he regretted one loose end.

This was his
attempt to interview Ian Cameron, the Assistant Secretary Political
based at Army HQ in Lisburn, about reports on Kincora his army
intelligence staff had provided for him.

Asking for
that interview, he told the inquiry, had caused "all manner of
issue" and was discussed and debated by many senior figures in the
UK military, intelligence and legal establishment.

Answers to 30
questions he wished to put to Mr Cameron were later provided in
writing by someone else.

Mr Caskey felt
they told him what he needed to know, but he still wishes he had
been granted the interview.

The Inquiry
continues. 30 June 2016

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 30th, 2016 @ 11:04
AM

South Wales
Police's response to child sex exploitation
'improves'…

Significant
time and resources has been invested to improve a police force's
response to child exploitation, a report has found.

Her Majesty's
Inspectorate of Constabulary said children in the South Wales force
area were being protected and safeguarded at an earlier
stage.

But it still
found "unnecessary delays" and said some exploitation risks are not
being identified.

It follows a
report last year which highlighted areas of concern.

Wendy Williams
of HMIC said: "It is clear from our follow-up inspection that South
Wales Police understands the improvements it needs to make in order
to improve its children services.

"The senior
leadership has made improving these services a priority, and the
introduction of child advocates is evidence of that commitment,
however there is still work to be done.

"I was pleased
to see that the force has improved the standard of its child
protection investigations, however it needs to reduce delays in
obtaining specialist support."

She said the
main area for improvement was "the reduction in unnecessarily
detaining children".

"We recognise
that the force needs to work with local authorities to achieve this
result and the force has already demonstrated positive examples of
joint working in other areas, which needs to be replicated here,"
she added.

Following on
from a report in 2015, inspectors continued to find cases where
risk was not identified and escalated appropriately or at the
earliest opportunity.

The report
raised concerns that too many children are being detained
unnecessarily in police custody.

South Wales
Police and Crime Commissioner Alun Michael said: "It is pleasing to
see the report reflect the commitment from the chief constable and
myself to continue to improve the way we and our partners protect
children.

"I am
particularly pleased that our child advocate partnership with
Barnardo's Cymru has been recognised. It allows us to reach out to
vulnerable children who are at risk of going missing and becoming a
victim of child sexual exploitation."

He
acknowledged more work needs to be carried out internally "and with
local authorities and partners". 30 June 2016

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 29th, 2016 @ 12:08
PM

1/2...Sex
abuse images of babies online…

Child sexual
abuse images of infants up to three years of age were reported in
Ireland last year.

A total of 327
cases of online child sexual abuse imagery were confirmed in
Ireland last year.

This figure
does not represent 327 individual cases, as one case can relate to
a single website carrying thousands of images.

“Now, some
people might say: ‘oh, 327, that doesn’t seem very much,’ but,
remember, we deal with reports.

A report could
be a whole website,” said Paul Durrant, chief executive of ISPAI,
and manager of Hotline.ie, yesterday.

In 2015, 70%
of the child-sexual abuse images and videos were of boys, 25% were
of girls, and 5% depicted both genders.

In terms of
the age profile, 92% of the illegal content was of prepubescent
children between 4 and 13 years of age. Pubescent children made up
7% and 1% was of infants up to three years of age.

“The content
that is most prolific, that gets reported to us, are the people who
are prepubescent. What was really shocking, for our content
analysts and also law enforcement, who are dealing with this after
us, is that big area [of infants up to
three-years-old].

How horrific
is that?” said Mr Durrant.

Internationally, the Irish
figures, in relation to the gender breakdown of child-sexual abuse
images, vary greatly with other countries.

“Comparing us
to Australia, Canada, Sweden and the UK, we can see that in the UK
there was only 9% where the victims were boys.

Australia also
9%. Sweden picked up 18% and Canada nearly 20%. So it shows that
there are considerable variations,” Mr Durrant said.

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 29th, 2016 @ 12:05
PM

2/2...Overall, ISPAI says
it dealt with 3,153 reports of online child-abuse imagery in 2015
the second-largest number of reports received in a year, since its
establishment in 1999.

The proportion
of confirmed cases of child sexual abuse imagery to suspected cases
was 4% higher last year, compared with 2014.

Members of the
public and internet service providers can report any alleged
illegal activity, or content, to Hotline.ie.

Of the 348
confirmed reports of illegal content last year, 21 of them did not
contain child-sexual abuse material.

There were 19
reports that related to financial scams and two reports that
confirmed the advertising of child-sex tourism.

“The number of
reports, submitted to Hotline.ie, quoting financial scams as
suspicious, remains low, despite the level of phishing, and other
email scams, which prevail on the internet.

“56% of these
reports were related to phishing activities purporting to be:
Revenue,

Speaking
yesterday, Junior Justice Minister David Stanton warned young
people against sharing pictures over the internet.

“Sexting may
also sometimes be associated with practices where minors are
induced, or coerced, into sharing images or, indeed, producing
ever-more extreme images.

“It must be
made clear to children and young people that ‘think before you
click’ is not just a catchphrase, but is vital to their safety and
welfare.

“Above all, it
must be remembered that, once an image is placed on the internet,
all control over it is lost to the individual,” said Mr
Stanton.hotline.ie

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 29th, 2016 @ 12:02
PM

1/2...
Panel member quits 'doomed' Scottish Child Abuse
Inquiry…

A key member
of the Scottish Government's child abuse inquiry has resigned,
saying it is "doomed" by government interference.

Psychology
professor Michael Lamb said there had been "repeated threats" to
the independence of the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry.

The major
review is scheduled to last four years, but has been criticised by
survivors of abuse.

The Scottish
government said it "entirely rejects" Mr Lamb's
comments.

The inquiry,
which concerns historical allegations of child abuse in Scotland,
will examine the extent of abuse of children in care, and identify
any systemic failures.

It launched a
formal call for evidence in March, but has already heard from some
seriously ill or very elderly survivors.

Mr Lamb one of
three members of the panel, alongside chairwoman Susan O'Brien QC
and Glenn Houston - said the project had "noble and worthy goals",
but that it was ultimately "doomed".

In a letter to
Education Secretary John Swinney, he said: "It has become
increasingly clear over the last nine months that the panel cannot
act independently and that the Scottish government intends to
continue interfering in ways large and small, directly and
indirectly.

"Continuing
interference threatens to prevent the inquiry from investigating
thoroughly and taking robust evidence of the highest
quality.

"Repeated
threats to the inquiry's independence have undermined the panel's
freedom and have doomed the inquiry before the first witness has
been heard.

"The Scottish
government has delayed or prevented the appointment of crucial
members of staff for prolonged periods of time while its officials
have questioned the decisions made by the supposedly independent
inquiry."

The government
spokesperson added: "The deputy first minister has also written to
survivors and their representatives about Prof Lamb's departure and
assured them that his primary objective is to ensure that this does
not impact on the progress that the independent inquiry has been
making."

Survivors and
their representatives are due to attend a ministerial meeting to
discuss the progress of the inquiry and support for
victims.

Angela
Constance, who established the inquiry in 2015, said the inquiry
would "aim to shine a light in the dark corners of the past, to
shape how we respond in the present and guide how we go forward in
the future."

Ms Constance
was forced to defend the inquiry's remit after campaigners claimed
institutions such as the Catholic Church and Boy Scouts could be
"let off the hook" by its terms of reference.

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 28th, 2016 @ 11:08
AM

327 cases
of online abuse of children last year…

Almost 330
cases of online child abuse were confirmed last year by the expert
monitoring group Hotline.ie.

In its annual
report, to be published today, the internet safety watchdog says it
dealt with a total of 3,153 reports of online child abuse imagery
the second-largest number of reports received in a year since its
establishment in 1999.

Despite a 35%
decrease in overall reporting when compared to 2014, the proportion
of confirmed cases of child sexual abuse imagery to suspected cases
reported was 4% higher last year.

Of the 327
confirmed cases, 70% of the content assessed depicted boys.
Hotline.ie says it has seen a constant increase in child abuse
imagery depicting boys over the past three years.

Some 70% of
the content it assessed in 2015 featured boys compared to 44% in
2013 and 42% in 2014.

While
international figures for 2015 have not yet been published,
historically the content depicting boys has been around
15%.

Hotline.ie
says there is no explanation for such a high level being reported
here other than the sheer volume of specific sites that are being
reported constantly and which are captured statistically as a
result.

The report
notes that Ireland continues to remain virtually free of hosting
child sex abuse imagery. There was one report of child abuse
imagery hosted here last year and only 28 since 1999.

Hotline.ie
forwarded 146 reports of child sex abuse imagery to eight Hotline
counterparts around the world and three more to the China and
Singapore through law-enforcement channels.

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 27th, 2016 @ 04:21
PM

Paedophile
Information Exchange member Douglas Slade guilty of
abuse…

A member of
the Paedophile Information Exchange, dubbed one of the "vilest men
in Britain", has been convicted of 13 child abuse
offences.

Douglas Slade,
75, was arrested in the Philippines in 2015 and deported back to
the UK to face 13 charges relating to the abuse of five
boys.

Slade was
found guilty at Bristol Crown Court of six serious sexual offences
and seven counts of indecent assault.

The crimes
took place between 1965 and 1980.

Another man,
Christopher Skeaping, 72, formerly of Hounslow in London, was found
guilty of one charge of indecent assault dating back to
1980.

Slade was an
early member of the notorious pro-paedophile group PIE which was
set up in 1975.

The BBC spoke
to one of Slade's victims, who met him in 1980 when he was 15 years
old.

He was
repeatedly raped and offered to other men during visits to Slade's
Bristol home.

"I was in a
desperate situation at home," the survivor said.

"I was looking
for somewhere that would be a refuge for me."

Slade's
history of paedophilia was exposed in the Sunday People where he
was named as one of the "vilest men in Britain".

Det Sgt Paul
Melton, from Avon and Somerset Police, said Slade "was one of the
main instigators" of the group, running a helpline for paedophiles
from his parents' home.

"It was a
network of people who abused children and handed children between
men in order that they could abuse them."

Sentencing
will take place at Bristol Crown Court on Friday.

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 27th, 2016 @ 11:11
AM

1/2...Galway sexual abuse
unit treated three one- year-old children …

Average age of
children seen last year was seven, Dr Joanne Nelson tells
conference

Dr Joanne
Nelson: “We are chasing best practice and we have a very long way
to go,” she told conference in Sligo on responding to children who
disclose sexual abuse.

Three children
who attended a child sexual abuse unit in Galway last year were
just one year old, a conference on responding to children who
disclose sexual abuse has been told.

The average
age of the 73 children seen at the unit last year was seven, Dr
Joanne Nelson, consultant paediatrician and clinical director of
the Galway child and adolescent sexual assault treatment service,
told the conference in Sligo on Friday.

The most
common age for a child presenting for examination was four, and the
oldest child was 16.

Two-thirds
female Data from the unit, which is the only one in the country
with a 24-hour service, shows two-thirds of those attending were
female and most were referred by Gardaí.

Dr Nelson said
Galway had one forensic room, shared with adult services, and three
examiners on a one-in-three rota, in addition to the hospital
rotas.

She said the
service offered in Dublin involved two paediatricians, who examine
children during in-hours and who have one clinic a fortnight
each.

“Come a
weekend, if they are not on call, there is no service within
Dublin,” she said.

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 27th, 2016 @ 11:08
AM

2/2...There
is one paediatrician in Cavan, who sees about 10 patients a year
and there are three busy general paediatricians in Cork on an acute
rota, who may or may not be able to help, Dr Nelson
said.

There is also
one part-time paediatrician in Waterford, working
in-hours.

She wanted to
see three specialised centres with 24-hour services and a system
where a service could be received locally, in a scheduled
fashion.

This would
mean children “did not have to travel for four hours from Donegal
to Galway to be examined and vomit in the car”.

“We are
chasing best practice and we have a very long way to go,” she
said.

The need for
co-operation among professionals working in the area of child
sexual abuse was emphasised by speakers, as well as the need to
prevent multiple interviews, by various agencies, of children who
allege sexual abuse.

Det Supt
Declan Daly said there would be a more robust interagency approach
in future.

A joint
specialist interviewing committee had been established with Tusla
and Gardaí, he said, and a national protocol for specialist
interviewing would be developed.

Family law
barrister Natalie McDonnell said children had a right to have the
best possible evidence placed before a court charged with making
decisions about them.Consultant
clinical psychologist Dr Maeve Mangaoang said children with
disabilities were three times more likely to be abused than other
children.

The
conference, “Getting it Right”, was organised by Tigala, an agency
for court-appointed, guardians ad litem, ie guardians appointed to
act on behalf of a child not considered capable of representing
themselves.

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 27th, 2016 @ 11:04
AM

1/1...Enda
Kenny ‘must intervene’ as abuse probe delayed…

Taoiseach Enda
Kenny has been called upon to intervene directly to explain the
“shocking” delay to a commission of investigation into the sexual
abuse at a foster home in Waterford.

A scoping
report into the abuse allegations relating to the foster home was
due back last month, but will not now be delivered until the day
after the Dáil rises for the summer break in July.

Following a
series of Irish Examiner reports this year, the previous government
announced that a commission would be established to examine
allegations.

However, it
has now emerged that it will be autumn at least before the
commission is formally established, as the HSE has sought more time
to respond to a preliminary report.

The previous
government relented to mounting pressure after this newspaper’s
reports, which centred on the neglect and abuse of a woman given
the name Grace, revealing that she was left in the home until 2009,
16 years after abuse allegations first surfaced.

Speaking to
the Irish Examiner, Oireachtas finance committee chairman John
McGuinness, who drove the bid to expose the abuse scandal, called
on the Taoiseach to intervene to establish the commission as soon
as possible.

“I am amazed,
shocked, and disappointed at the news that this is going to be
delayed,” he said.

“After so
long, it is disappointing that this is being kicked to
touch.

The Taoiseach
now has to do something about this; he has to
intervene.”

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 27th, 2016 @ 11:01
AM

2/2...At
the weekend, former junior health minister and Labour TD Kathleen
Lynch expressed her concern at the “disturbing” delay.

Last December,
Ms Lynch appointed senior counsel Conor Dignam to conduct a scoping
report of available information about the foster home and its
relationship with the 47 former residents who were sent there
between the early 1980s and 2013.

Among the
documents under his consideration are two HSE-sponsored reports the
2012 Conal Devine Report and the 2015 Transparency Ireland Report
neither of which have been published.

This is
because the abuse allegations are under Garda investigation and the
HSE has insisted it wants to see the reports in the public domain,
but it must adhere to the Garda request.

It is
understood that Mr Dignam submitted a draft report three weeks ago,
but the HSE sought an extension to respond, so the full report is
not due back until July 22, the day after the Dáil rises for the
summer recess.

In a
statement, the HSE said: “We were given a draft report to consider
in terms of factual accuracy.

This would
involve us talking to quite a few staff in different parts of the
country.”

The minister
responsible for overseeing this matter, Finian McGrath, was not in
a position to comment, but is known to be somewhat frustrated at
the lack of progress.

The matter
will not now go to Cabinet this week.

Our reports
revealed how, following a letter from the foster father to the
minister of health in 1996, a decision to remove Grace from the
foster home was overturned and she remained in the home until
2009.

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 24th, 2016 @ 08:18
PM

Paedophile
father is jailed for abusing his own nephew for years…

A man who
subjected his young nephew to a "campaign of sexual violence" has
been handed a 15-year sentence.

Telling the
49-year old pervert that he abused his position of trust "in the
most appalling way",

Judge Donna
McColgan informed the father-of-three he would spend 12 years of
the sentence in prison, followed by a three-year probation
order.

The man, who
cannot be named to protect the identity of his victim, was found
guilty by a jury earlier this year of sexually abusing his nephew
in the 1990s.

His young
victim was just six when the abuse began, and it continued until he
was 13.Despite the
conviction, the paedophile continues to deny the offences occurred
and maintains he is innocent.

He has already
lodged an appeal against his conviction.

During the
sentencing hearing at Belfast Crown Court, Judge McColgan said the
pervert's offending has had a "profound" effect on the
victim.

During the
trial, the jury was told the offences which happened between
October 1990 and October 1998 - occurred in the victim's
grandparents' home in north Down.

The defendant,
who still lived at home, abused his sister's son in his bedroom in
a household that the Crown said should have been where the victim
felt "safe, secure and looked after".

The Crown
added that a "wide range of offending" occurred, with the victim
subjected to years of indignities and humiliation at his uncle's
hands.

The abuse took
place when the man was aged between 23 and 31.

When the
nephew finally broke his silence and reported the matter to police
in October 2013, the now 34-year-old told officers that from as
early as he could remember, his uncle abused him on a regular
basis.

He also said
that he feared telling anyone because he thought he would be taken
into care.

When the uncle
was arrested by police following his nephew's allegations, he made
the case there was no sexual impropriety whatsoever.

Judge McColgan
told the man he had displayed "no sense of victim empathy or
remorse" and branded his offending as a "campaign of sexual
violence" against his nephew which consisted of "persistent and
sustained abuse".

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 23rd, 2016 @ 05:07
PM

Dad Who
Raped Daughter: 'Was Fun While It Lasted'…

A father in
Australia has been jailed for 22-and-a-half years for repeatedly
raping his daughter and offering her to strangers to
abuse.

The man, who
cannot be named to protect the child's identity, admitted
committing 61 offences between 2013 and 2015.

The girl, who
lived with her father after her parents separated, was aged between
11 and 13 at the time.

The
42-year-old father also arranged for six other men, whom he met
online, to have sex with her while he watched or
participated.

The West
Australian District Court in Perth heard that after his arrest he
told police that while he had regrets about what he had done, "it
was fun while it lasted".

On one
occasion when the father and another man were filming an attack,
the girl was shown shackled to a bed, wearing a dog collar with the
word 'bitch' on it, the West Australian newspaper
reported.

In the
footage, the girl could be seen struggling against the restraints
and pleading "stop, please Dad", it said.

Prosecutor
Justin Whalley described the case as one of the worst of its kind
to come before the courts in Western Australia.

The paedophile
ring was smashed last year after a tip-off from the
public.

Sentencing the
father on Thursday, Judge Philip Eaton said the abuse would likely
have "lasting and irreparable consequences" for the
girl.

"You
completely disregarded her welfare," he said.

"I have no
doubt that you derived perverse sexual enjoyment while doing
so."

One of the
other men involved, a church pastor, was sentenced to 10 years in
prison last November.

Two other men
have also been jailed with three more still before the
courts.

New York’s
state legislatures ended their 2016 session at the weekend without
acting on new legislation to help survivors of child sex
abuse.

Responding to
the news, Catholic League spokesperson Bill Donohue was jubilant,
writing on his website: “The bill was sold as justice for the
victims of sexual abuse, when, in fact, it was a sham: the proposed
legislation that failed to make it to the floor of the New York
State legislature in the wee hours of Saturday was a vindictive
bill pushed by lawyers and activists out to rape the Catholic
Church.”

Critics have
called Donohue’s language appallingly insensitive, given the
international scope of the child sex abuse crisis in the church,
but the outspoken lobbyist was taking no prisoners.

“If the
statute of limitations were lifted on offenses involving the sexual
abuse of minors, the only winners would be greedy and bigoted
lawyers out to line their pockets in a rash of settlements,”
Donohue continued.

“The big
losers would be the poor, about whom the attorneys and activists
care little: When money is funneled from parishioners to lawyers,
services to the needy suffer.

The Catholic
League is proud of its role in this victory.”

Victims and
advocates had hoped for a last minute miracle from legislators but
it was not to be.

The bill moved
through committee but never emerged from it.

Responding to
the failure to take action Gary Greenberg, an upstate investor who
was sexually abused as a child, told the Daily News that survivors
won't forget who let the bill die when every seat in the
Legislature is up for election in November.

"Our elected
officials chose predators over victims,” he told the
press.

Sponsored by
Assemblywoman Margaret Markey the proposed bill would have
increased the time a sexual abuse claim can be brought by five
years, as well as opening a six-month window to revive old cases,
treating public and private entities in the same way when it comes
to sex abuse cases.

Under current
law a victim of child sex abuse has to file a lawsuit or seek a
criminal case before they reach their 23rd birthday. Critics argue
that it can take much longer to contend with the damage and decide
to pursue justice, however.

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 23rd, 2016 @ 12:31
PM

1/2...Man
who groomed and had sex with vulnerable teen is jailed for two
years…A man who
pleaded guilty to sexually grooming and having sex with a
vulnerable 13-year-old girl when she lived in a children's home was
jailed for two years at the Crown Court in Londonderry
yesterday.

Bernard Cooke
(23), whose address was given as Maghaberry Prison, committed the
offences in October 2014, the same month when he was served with a
Harbourer's Notice by the police warning him not to have any
contact with the girl, who was named on court papers as
"Z".

Cooke has also
been banned from having unapproved contact with any child under 16,
unless unavoidable or inadvertent, and banned from entering the
curtilage, grounds or buildings of any residential children's home
in Northern Ireland.

Those orders,
as well as a Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO), will remain
in force for 10 years.

Judge Philip
Babington said he was satisfied that it was necessary to make a
SOPO for the purpose of protecting the public or particular members
of the public from serious sexual harm from Cooke.

The defendant
had 30 previous criminal convictions, one of them for administering
poison to a prison officer.

He was
arrested at 11.30pm on October 8, 2014, when staff in the
children's home informed the police Cooke was in the girl's
room.

The police
entered the room and found the teenager in bed. They found Cooke
hiding behind a door in the adjoining en-suite area. He was fully
clothed.

The girl was
medically examined and forensic samples were taken.

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 23rd, 2016 @ 12:29
PM

2/2...An
analysis of the samples confirmed the presence of Cooke's semen and
the girl told the doctor she had had sexual intercourse with Cooke
on one occasion.

The grooming
charge related to Cooke sending text messages to the girl who
replied to one of his texts "I want to go steady".

Judge
Babington said Cooke's offending had escalated in its seriousness,
though he had no previous convictions of a sexual
nature.

"There is no
doubt to my mind that he has been properly assessed as presenting
at a high likelihood of future and general reoffending," he
said.

"Furthermore,
his behaviour in coming to the children's home following the
serving of a Harbourer's Notice is very concerning. It is probably
fair to say that staff and police arrived just in time before
further offending might have been committed," Judge Babington
added.

"Of concern to
the court is an eight-and-a-half-year age difference between Z and
the defendant.

"It is
difficult to know whether there was any harm to Z as she has not
made any statement nor is there any victim impact
report.

She was only
13 and it is only fair to assume that there must have been some
harm, although it is safe to probably assume that it is minimal,"
Judge Babington said.

Judge
Babington told Cooke: "You are prohibited from having any contact
or communication with any child under 16 years, other than such as
is inadvertent and not reasonably avoidable in the course of lawful
daily life unless with prior approval of your designated risk
manager and social services in writing.

"You are
prohibited from denying police entry to your home when their
purpose is to enforce the SOPO conditions.

I am satisfied
that the SOPO should remain in force for a period of 10 years,
being the same as the notification provisions."

A "persistent
paedophile" who got his 15-year-old victim pregnant has been
sentenced to six years for sexual and violent offences against the
girl.

Kenneth
Rutherford will serve half his sentence in prison and half on
supervised licence upon his release, after he admitted a string of
charges linked to the girl.

Rutherford,
from Derrycarne Road in Portadown, pleaded guilty to indecently
assaulting her over a period spanning January 2006 to October 2007,
assaulting her and breaking her ribs, and causing her to fear
violence.

Belfast Crown
Court heard that 49-year old Rutherford embarked on a sexual
relationship with the then 14-year old, which resulted in her
becoming pregnant aged 15.

At a previous
hearing, the court was told by Crown prosecutor Kate McKay that
Rutherford and the girl met through friends, and at that point he
said he was 22 - but he was almost 40.

While she
initially told him she was 18, it soon became clear she was
underage - but he continued the relationship with her
regardless.

Mrs McKay said
that when the girl became pregnant with his child in September
2006, Rutherford "behaved towards her in a threatening manner,
causing her to fear violence throughout that period, and in fact
most of their relationship."

Mrs McKay said
the victim, who is now 25, is "still very much suffering from the
residue of this toxic relationship with this much older man".Judge
Kerr branded

Rutherford a
"persistent paedophile," and during yesterday's sentencing he said
that after reading a probation report on Rutherford it was
"absolutely clear that this defendant considers he is not fully
responsible, and continues to blame his victim.

"As well as
being handed a six-year sentence, Rutherford was also placed on the
Sex Offenders Register for life, and was made the subject of a
10-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order (SOPO).

“As we look at
what happened the Church in Ireland in the aftermath of the
clerical sex abuse cases I think we could say that Acton’s dictum
was borne out to a greater or lesser extent.

“The power
that the church enjoyed is a part of the explanation for the
dreadful things that happened.”

Prof Whyte was
taking part in a conference organised by Trinity’s Loyola Institute
on ‘The Role of Church in a Pluralist Societry: Good Riddance or
Good Influence?’

Referring to
the use of laws to enforce religious observance, he said: “In my
personal opinion Irish experience showed that state support for
denominational education failed at the very basic level of ensuring
that Catholics had a proper understanding of the tenets of their
religion.

From a faith
perspective I don’t believe that this model of the church was
effective as witnessed by the very dramatic change in attitude
towards Catholicism in this country.

“In terms of
the theme of today’s conference I say good riddance to that
particular model. In contrast, in my opinion, religion is most
effective when it is prophetic and where people of faith lead by
example.I think, in
the context of the growing secularisation of Irish society, there
may be greater potential in time, for this model of church to be a
good influence on society.”

Speakers at
the conference include the Archbishop of Munich and Freising,
Cardinal Reinhard Marx, one of the nine members of the Council of
Cardinals which advises Pope Francis.

Ireland’s
national seminary, St. Patrick's College in Maynooth, has strongly
denied its president’s just announced sabbatical is in any way
connected to recent anonymous claims of a gay subculture in the
Catholic seminary.

A statement
published on the college's website last week that said Monsignor
Hugh Connolly “has advised the staff of his plans to take
sabbatical leave for the academic year 2016-2017,” raised eyebrows
because it coincides with the last year of his tenure as president
of the national seminary, which currently has more than 60 men
studying for the priesthood.

The statement
continued, explaining that Connolly would remain as president until
the completion of his term in the summer of 2017 and he would
continue to exercise certain administrative duties throughout the
year.

Connolly’s
departure comes in the wake of controversial allegations made about
life in the seminary.

The Irish
Catholic reported that an anonymous source had claimed in a letter
to college authorities last year that some seminarians had been
guilty of misconduct of a homosexual nature.

College
authorities indicated that they could not act on allegations made
by someone who would not publicly support them,
however.

Meanwhile a
number of student priests were reportedly asked to take time out of
the seminary studies last year because they were judged to be “too
conservative” even for the buttoned down atmosphere of the
seminary, an allegation college authorities have
denied.

Maynooth
vice-president Father Michael Mullaney will reportedly serve as
acting-president and assume day-to-day responsibility for running
the college in the interim.

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 21st, 2016 @ 12:52
PM

2/2...Bishop Pat Buckley,
an outspoken rebel cleric who was excommunicated in 1998, told the
press that the timing of Connolly’s departure tells a story in
itself. "This sabbatical comes as the Maynooth gay scandal rages,”
he told the press.

"Why not
finish the last year of his term and then take the sabbatical at
the natural juncture of leaving the presidency and going back to
teach?"

Buckley, who
is openly gay, compared the departure of Connolly with a recent
story in The Irish Catholic, which said a letter making allegations
of inappropriate behavior by some seminarians in Maynooth had been
sent to the Irish bishops and that St.

Patrick's
College was investigating the matter.

In his blog,
Bishop Buckley claimed the national seminary in Maynooth, like the
Irish College in Rome, "have been in deep trouble for decades
mainly due to the homosexual subculture that exists in both
places.”

Buckley has
railed against what he calls the hypocrisy of the church’s public
teachings on the issue, considering what some of its clerics do in
private.

“Other priests
have married women or entered civil partnerships with men. But
they’d all left the church beforehand none continued with their
ministry. I’ve been battling against the Catholic church as an
institution for 25 years.

I’m old and
wise enough not to lose sleep worrying over what the hierarchy
thinks,” he previously told The Sunday Tribune.

A previous
head of the Maynooth seminary, Monsignor Michael Ledwith, resigned
in 1994 six months before his term of office was due to end.
Allegations of the sexual abuse of a minor male were made shortly
after his resignation.

The Ferns
Report, an official Irish government inquiry into the allegations
of clerical sexual abuse, was highly critical of Ledwith's
behaviour after the allegations came to light, stating that "as
with many other priests accused of child abuse" Ledwith "attacked
the (legal) process rather than facing any charges.”

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 21st, 2016 @ 12:49
PM

1/2...Over
half of victims were told not to tell of sex abuse…

A review of
children’s files at one of the country’s main sexual abuse
assessment units shows that in more than half of all cases, the
children had been told not to tell of the abuse.

The research
also highlighted some other themes linked to the abuse, with the
review showing parental domestic abuse was a factor in 35% of
cases, that the alleged perpetrator of the abuse was aged under 20
in 41% of cases, and that the abuse began for children aged between
five and 12 in more than half of all cases reviewed. In more than
17% of cases, the abuse began when the child was aged four or
under.

The research
will form the basis for a presentation by one of the authors at a
major conference on disclosure and child sex abuse to be held on
Friday in Sligo.

The review of
80 children’s files was conducted by Dr Rosaleen McElvaney and
Aisling Costello of Dublin City University and Dr Rhonda Turner of
Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children. It shows abuse by another
family member was present in 62.5% of cases, while extrafamilial
abuse was a feature in 35% of cases.

Almost three
quarters of children still confined the secret to a small group
even when the abuse was disclosed, with 65% saying they had
difficulty in talking about it and 64% stating they felt shame,
while 61% said they did not want to upset others.

Some 55% said
they were told not to tell, while 41% said they thought they might
be in trouble if they spoke about it.

There was a
huge amount of distress caused by the abuse, and in more than 71%
of cases the victim had either tried to stop the abuse or had tried
on a previous occasion to tell someone about it.

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 21st, 2016 @ 12:47
PM

2/2...As
for confiding, 41% told a parent and 38% used the support of a
teacher or a counsellor.

Dr McElvaney,
the programme chair of the doctorate in psychotherapy at the school
of nursing and human sciences in DCU, is among the speakers at the
conference.

She said the
data highlighted how more needs to be done to create an atmosphere
and environment that encourages children to disclose if they have
been abused.

“The State can
raise awareness, of the extent of it, how common it is, and what
are the behaviours associated with it,” she said.

“At school
level and in community groups we need to make sure staff are
comfortable and open to the possibility that abuse has
occurred.

Within
families, we need to give children the opportunities to ask them
and to create an atmosphere that they will tell if there is
something wrong in their lives.”

The research,
funded by BASPCAN, the Association for the Study and Prevention of
Child Abuse and Neglect, found three ‘typical’ themes were
identified as influencing the disclosure process feeling
distressed, opportunity to tell, and fears for self.

Four ‘variant’
themes were identified concerns for others, being believed,
shame/guilt, and peer influence.

Friday’s
conference, organised by the Independent Guardian Ad Litem Agency ,
is called Getting it Right Responding to Children who Disclose
Sexual Abuse and will be chaired by district judge Paul
Kelly

ANON
(spike9w@yahoo.com) Jun 21st, 2016 @ 10:47
AM

Children As
Young As One Targeted By Paedophiles …

There were
thousands of internet-related sex crimes in England and Wales in
2015/16, with the youngest victim just one year old.

Children as
young as one year old have fallen victim to online paedophiles,
according to the NSPCC.

There were
3,186 internet-related sex crimes against children recorded by 38
police forces in England and Wales in 2015/16, according to the
charity's report.

The offences
included sexual assaults, grooming victims and inciting children to
take pa

sexual
acts.

Where a
victim's age was provided by police, most were 13 years old but 272
were under the age of 10 and the youngest was just one year
old.

Chief executive
of the NSPCC Peter Wanless said the figures "confirm our fears that
the online world is playing a significant role in the sexual abuse
of children in the UK".

He added: "It's
clear that a large volume of sexual assaults and rapes of children
have involved the use of the internet for example by grooming
victims before abusing them offline, or live-streaming the
abuse.

"We know
grooming is on the rise because children are increasingly telling
our

ChildLine
service how they are being targeted online.

"Predatory
adults posing as children try to meet them or blackmail them into
meeting up or performing sexual acts on webcams, which obviously
terrifies them and can leave some feeling suicidal."

This is the
first year that police are required to separately record sex abuse
cases where the internet is used but the NSPCC says that a small
number of forces said they either didn't know about or weren't
using the Home Office scheme.

Anne Longfield,
Children's Commissioner for England, said the "concerning" figures
were likely to be "just the tip of the iceberg".

She added:
"Successful police operations show that online sexual offenders use
sophisticated methods to target, trick and groom children, and may
target hundreds of children at a time.

"The internet
is increasingly integral to children's lives and they need to be
educated about the risks, as well as how to report suspicious
behaviour.

"The effect of
abuse, whether it happens offline or online is devastating and we
need to ensure therapy to help them recover from their ordeal is
available."

For more
than 60 years, Sylvia Woosley kept a terrible secret. When she
finally spoke publicly last week about the sexual abuse she
suffered from the age of 10 at the hands of the late Sir Clement
Freud, her words hinted at the corrosive guilt and shame she had
carried with her all that time: “I want to die clean.”

Now in her late
seventies, Sylvia decided to break her silence in an ITV Exposure
programme, aired last Wednesday. She watched it at the home of
David Henshaw, its executive producer. “Afterwards, I asked her how
she felt, and she said, ‘I just feel very happy’,” he says. “She
looked 10 years younger. She was very eloquent, talking about how
it was the child in her who wanted to be heard and believed, and
when that finally happened, she felt a huge sense of relief and
peace.”

Many watching
may have wondered, why now? But strikingly sad as Sylvia’s story
is, it is not uncommon for abuse victims appear to wait until their
twilight years to reveal their experiences - the thought of taking
their suffering to their grave finally outweighing the pain
incumbent in unburdening themselves.

“We get calls
from people as old as 90, some of whom have never told anybody
about what they went through as children – not even their closest
family members,” says Pete Saunders, chief executive of the
National Association for People Abused in Childhood (NAPAC). “The
average time for a victim to speak out is 22 years after the last
incidence of abuse, but it can be much, much longer.

“Towards the
end of people’s lives, they often reflect back and feel a need to
address unresolved issues. Victims can realise what happened to
them was an absolute disaster which clouded everything in their
lives.”

Child sexual
abuse most commonly happens in the home, perpetrated by a family
member or close friend, which makes it particularly difficult for
victims to speak out.At the time
that it’s happening, victims feel total confusion if their abuser
is someone close to them, someone who has made them feel loved,”
says Pete, who suffered sexual abuse by a family member during his
own childhood. “They worry they won’t be believed if they tell
someone, but they often also feel a sense of awe about their
abuser, and an attachment to them, which makes them want to protect
that person.”

In the
programme, Sylvia admitted to feeling liberated to come forward by
Freud’s death in 2009, because her revelations could no longer
destroy his rel

ANON
Jun 18th, 2016 @ 11:14 AM

The number
of homeless children reached 2,177 in May…

Number of
minors in emergency accommodation rose by 79% in a
year

The number of
homeless children and families continues to increase with the
latest figures for last month showing there were 2,177 homeless
children in 1,054 families homeless across the State last
month.

This represents
a 79 per cent increase in the number of children in emergency
accommodation since May 2015, and an 86 per cent increase in
families.

In May 2015
there were 1,211 homeless children in 565 families.

The highest
numbers are in Dublin, where in the week of May 23rd-29th there
were 1,847 children in emergency accommodation, in 913
families.

This compares
with 1,034 children in May 2015 (78 per cent increase) in 490
families (86 per cent increase).

Of the 913
families in emergency accommodation in Dublin last month, 228, with
453 children, were in supported homeless accommodation, while 685
families, with 1,394 children, were in hotels and B&B
accommodation.

Nationally and
in Dublin, two-thirds of the families are headed by single parents.
Some 705 of the 1,054 families nationally were headed by lone
parents.

In Dublin, 608
of the 913 families were headed by single parents.

The Irish
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children said yesterday it
was “deeply disappointed” the Oireachtas Committee on Housing and
Homelessness had “failed” to recommend minimum standards for
families in emergency accommodation.

“The voice of
the child is missing from the report,” said the
charity.

“The practice
of homeless children being inappropriately placed with their
families in B&B and hotel emergency accommodation for long
periods must cease.

“The lack of
minimum standards in emergency accommodation in which hundreds of
children are placed regularly is a significant and immediate
concern for the ISPCC.”

ANON
Jun 18th, 2016 @ 10:38 AM

Child sexual
exploitation arrests in Northamptonshire…

Two women have
been arrested and questioned on suspicion of separate incidents of
child sexual exploitation.

The suspects
are not known to one another and the alleged offences are not
related, police said.

One woman is
32-years-old and from Kettering, the other is 35-years-old and from
Northampton.

Officers from
the Reducing Incidents of Sexual Exploitation team made the arrests
and both the women have been bailed pending further
investigation.

ANON
Jun 16th, 2016 @ 02:19 PM

Rape
sentence appeal struck out after accused dies….

A 79-year-old
man jailed for life for repeatedly raping his two young daughters
and sexually abusing his son has died before he was due to appeal
his life sentence.

The Dublin man,
who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was convicted in August
2010 of 87 counts of sexually assaulting and raping his two
daughters when they were aged between five and 11 and sexually
assaulting his son when he was aged between three and six at
various locations from 1997 to 2002.

He had denied
the charges.

He was found
guilty by a Central Criminal Court jury following a seven week
trial and was sentenced to life imprisonment by Mr Justice George
Birmingham on 4 October 2010 for the rape of his
daughters.

He was given
further determinate sentences for other offences.

The Court of
Appeal was told last October that although the man had come to
court for his appeal against conviction, he was too ill to sit
through the hearing, which was advanced by his legal team of
Dominic McGinn SC and Miceál O'Connor BL.

His appeal
against conviction was dismissed on all grounds last
May.

Giving
judgment, Mr Justice John Edwards had said the man's trial was
"satisfactory" and his conviction "safe".

He was due to
appeal against the severity of his sentence today.

However, Mr
McGinn told the court that his client had deceased and that the
sentence appeal could no longer be moved.

Mr Justice
Garrett Sheehan, who sat with Mr Justice Edwards and Mr Justice
Alan Mahon, said the court would strike out the appeal.

The project
will provide women who lived at mother and baby homes with free
legal assistance Women who lived in mother and baby homes across
Ireland can now avail of free legal assistance to make a witness
statement.

The project,
which will be known as Clann, has been set up by Justice for
Magdalenes Research and the Adoption Rights Alliance.

They say the
initiative will ensure the commission conducts the most
comprehensive investigation possible.

The new project
will provide women who lived at any of the country's mother and
baby homes with free legal assistance in drafting witness
statements.

Those behind
the project say it will allow women to make a comprehensive
statement to the commission which is investigating how unmarried
mothers and their babies were treated at 14 State-linked religious
institutions.

They say that
it will ensure that women can still give evidence even if they do
not wish to do so in person.

They also say
that while the commission's work is focusing on 14 homes, it will
be gathering information on over 170 institutions and will compile
a group report based on the statements made by those
affected.

ANON
Jun 15th, 2016 @ 12:48 PM

Child
welfare logging system confirmed…

The Child and
Family Agency has confirmed that the long-awaited Pulse-style
system for logging child welfare and protection concerns will be in
operation nationwide by the end of 2018.

By the time the
NCCIS (National Child Care Information System) is fully rolled out,
it will by the most of a decade since the plan was first
mooted.

The new system
will allow Tusla to monitor the progress of notifications and
referrals across the system and across the country.

With the
current paper-based system, for example, Tusla can only search for
referrals by the identity of the person who made the referral or by
the nature of the concern.

It cannot say
how many child welfare concerns have been raised in a given period
regarding children living in homeless accommodation such as hotels,
whereas such information would be easily accessible under
NCCIS.

A Tusla
spokesperson said the NCCIS includes a case management system to
record operational data and clinical information for social
workers, is currently operational in the Mid-West, and its
effectiveness is constantly monitored through a Project Advisory
Group who review the system and handle escalated user
issues.

Donal O’Malley,
chair of the Irish Association of Social Workers, said the news the
system would be fully operational was welcome, but added it needed
to be backed by the necessary personnel. “We welcome the fact that
it’s coming in, but it is disappointing, to say least, that it has
taken this long and that it is going to take another 18 months,” he
said.

ANON
Jun 15th, 2016 @ 12:45 PM

1/2...Victim
of abuse at Kincora home withdraws from inquiry…

Richard Kerr
feels he has not been given all material that is being relied upon
in hearings.

A man who was
physically and sexually abused at Kincora Boys’ Home in Belfast has
withdrawn as a participant in the Historical Institutional Abuse
Inquiry in Banbridge as he does not have access to a range of
documents.

Richard Kerr
said he had agreed to be involved in the inquiry despite having
reservations about taking part on the grounds that the inquiry did
not have powers to compel witnesses and because he felt it did not
have sufficient powers to investigate allegations of British state
collusion.

His decision to
participate was on the basis that his legal representatives would
be given a proper opportunity to represent him and his interests at
the inquiry but as he feels this has not happened he has no
confidence in proceedings and will no longer take
part.

Mr Kerr, who is
based in the US, was invited to be a core participant at the
inquiry after being advised by the chairman Sir Anthony Hart that
his participation in the investigations would be of
assistance.

The inquiry has
a remit to investigate physical, emotional and sexual abuse, and
childhood neglect which occurred in residential institutions in
Northern Ireland over a 73-year period up to 1995.

A number of
state bodies including the RUC, MI5 and MI6 are being investigated
by the inquiry.

Mr Kerr’s
statement, issued through KRW solicitors, said “credible
allegations that the British security forces and security services
knew of and colluded in that abuse deserve fearless and public
investigation through an independent inquiry with full
powers.

ANON
Jun 15th, 2016 @ 12:41 PM

2/2...“Mr
Kerr is not able to give instructions to his legal representatives
because he does not access to the range material being relied upon
by the Inquiry and therefore his legal representatives are unable
to provide him with the necessary advice,” it
continues.

Mr Kerr is
unhappy that he was only provided with a bundle of 740 documents
last week rather than the 16,000 pages he had
expected.

“He has not
been provided with any documents obtained from or submitted by the
British security forces and security services. It is not clear why
the Inquiry wish to conceal these documents from Mr Kerr or his
legal representatives,” the statement says.

“In the context
of an Inquiry that is investigating allegations that the British
security forces and security services knew that abuse was and would
be perpetrated on the children in Kincora and covered this up this
is inherently unreasonable.”

The statement
added that if the inquiry changes its approach Mr Kerr will
reconsider his position.

The Historical
Abuse Inquiry said it regretted Mr Kerr’s decision but said it was
not correct to suggest that it wished to conceal documents from him
or his representatives.

“His legal
representatives have accepted to the Inquiry that what the agencies
of the State knew about the abuse perpetrated at Kincora and the
individuals perpetrating that abuse, or when they knew about it,
are matters that are not within Mr Kerr’s knowledge.

The Inquiry has
no reason to believe that he can speak of his own knowledge on the
issues of State participation,” it said in a
statement.

“The Inquiry
does not intend to engage in public debate with Mr Kerr on the
other matters referred to in his statement, save to say that it
does not accept its procedures are unfair.

These
procedures have been repeatedly upheld as fair by the courts,
including the United Kingdom Supreme Court.”

Former
“singing” priest Tony Walsh has been convicted of sexually abusing
a young boy.Walsh (62),
currently serving a sentence for sexual offences against a number
of other children, denied ever knowing the boy and said he had
never assaulted him.

“If I knew him
I would have pleaded guilty years ago,” Walsh told the court as he
gave evidence on his own behalf.

Walsh, who was
a member of the All Priests Show, was asked by his counsel how he
felt towards the children he had assaulted.

“I am sorry it
happened. It should never have happened. It was as near to illness
as you can have without being sick,” he replied.

Walsh, formerly
of North Circular Road, Dublin 7, had pleaded not guilty at Dublin
Circuit Criminal Court to five counts of indecently assaulting the
boy on dates between January 1980 and December 1982.

The boy was
aged between 10 and 13 years old at the time of the
abuse.

The jury of two
women and 10 men returned verdicts of guilty on all counts after
approximately one hour of deliberation following a three-day
trial.

Judge Elma
Sheahan thanked the jury for its service and remanded Walsh in
custody for sentencing on July 4th.

During the
trial, the victim told Fiona McGowan BL, prosecuting, that on the
first occasions Walsh had sat him on his knee and pulled him
backwards with a gyrating motion.

ANON
Jun 15th, 2016 @ 12:35 PM

2/2…ElvisOn further
occasions he said Walsh sat him on his knee and then pulled down
his trousers and underwear before fondling his
genitalia.

He said he
sometimes remembered music playing and that Walsh told him it was
Elvis.

He also
recalled being bent over a sofa by Walsh who then put what he
believed was his finger into his rectum before then putting his
penis into him.

He said on
another day he felt something being put inside him and afterwards
saw a crucifix on the ground behind him.

He said on the
final occasion Walsh asked him to go for a walk and pulled down his
underwear and put his penis inside him again.

He said he made
his complaint to Gardaí in April 2011.

During cross
examination by Kieran O’Loughlin SC, defending, he denied a
suggestion that he was aware of Walsh’s reputation from news
reports and had “built up” things in his mind that had been
intended as friendship.

Giving evidence
in his own defence Walsh told Mr O’Loughlin that he did not know
who the complainant was and did not believe he had ever met
him.

“I never did
anything to him,” said Walsh.

He told Mr
O’Loughlin that the allegations were “absolutely
untrue”.

When asked
about the allegation in the book of evidence regarding the crucifix
he said “I was just shocked when I saw that.” 15 June
2016

ANON
Jun 14th, 2016 @ 04:26 PM

1/2..Man
sentenced to eight and a half years for sexual abuse…

Castlebar
Circuit Criminal Court heard that the victim was groomed by the
perpetrator when he travelled to Ireland on holiday each
year

A 76-year-old
man has been sentenced to eight and a half years in prison for the
sexual abuse of a boy in the west of Ireland over a five-year
period.

Castlebar
Circuit Criminal Court heard that the victim was groomed by the
perpetrator when he travelled to Ireland on holiday each
year.

The abuse
happened at a number of locations, on dates between 2000 and 2005.
Gardaí were notified when the victim came forward and made a
complaint in 2010.

The accused was
arrested overseas and extradited to Ireland in 2014.

He has been in
custody here since then. He pleaded guilty to the five charges
before the court.

In a
victim-impact statement read to the court, the man said the abuser
had robbed him of a normal childhood and left him haunted into his
adult life.

He told the
court that the man who carried out the crimes was a
larger-than-life figure, who had completely manipulated his family
into trusting him.

He said it was
now clear that everything he did was in preparation for the abuse
he carried out.

The victim told
the court that he had been under the control of the man between the
ages of 12 and 17.

ANON
Jun 14th, 2016 @ 04:23 PM

2/2...In the
aftermath of the abuse he felt lonely, depressed and
suicidal.

He told Judge
Rory McCabe that he decided to break his silence and tell his
family and Gardaí about the abuse when he became concerned that a
young relative of his might be at risk from the same
man.

The statement
detailed how the accused man had shown no sign of remorse for his
actions.

The court heard
how the man took photographs as the crimes were being perpetrated
and how the abuse took place each summer over a number of
years.

Defending
barrister Eoin Garavan told the court this was an extremely
difficult and tragic case.

He said his
client had clearly broken the trust of the victim and his family.
The accused was said to have a number of medical conditions and was
"quite immobile" as a result.

Judge McCabe
said the charges were of a most serious nature. He said careful and
calculated grooming had taken place and that, allied to the
duration of time the abuse went on for, there were significant
aggravating factors.

He imposed
sentences ranging from 20 months to eight and a half years for the
five charges. Judge McCabe ordered that these be served
concurrently but said the lack of remorse shown meant there was no
scope to suspend any portion of the sentence.

The judge
backdated the sentence to January 2014, when the accused was
initially arrested.

ANON
Jun 14th, 2016 @ 04:15 PM

Woman
arrested after leaving children aged four and six home alone to
travel abroad…

A 28-year-old
woman was arrested after leaving children in her care home alone to
travel abroad." A woman has been arrested after two children aged
four and six were left home alone while their parents were
overseas.

The 28-year-old
woman from Perth, who is believed to be the children's stepmother,
was charged with two counts of knowingly engaging in conduct that
may harm a child in her care.

Police said the
children were found alone at home when officers gained entry
through an unlocked door.

The woman was
arrested at the airport after she arrived in Western Australia on
an inbound flight, and was detained by Border Force
officials.

The father is
believed to be elsewhere overseas.

“It will be
alleged both parents were overseas at the time the officers entered
the property,” police said.

“The children
were subsequently removed from the property and placed into
appropriate care.”

A retired
grammar school vice principal has appeared in court accused of
indecently assaulting a woman more than 20 years ago.

Standing in
Lisburn Magistrates Court, 70-year-old Francis Noel Stroud
confirmed his identity and that he was aware of the single charge
against him.

The
father-of-three, from Sandymount Mews in Dunmurry, Belfast, is
alleged to have indecently assaulted a female on a date between
September 1 and December 31, 1994.

While none of
the circumstances giving rise to the charge were opened during the
brief preliminary hearing, a prosecuting lawyer claimed the legal
papers "disclose a case to answer" a submission that Stroud's
defence solicitor conceded.

The court clerk
asked Stroud if he wished to comment on the charge or present
evidence to the court by testifying or calling witnesses, but he
replied, "no, not at this time".

Returning the
case to Craigavon Crown Court after granting a bad character
application, District Judge Rosie Watters released Stroud on his
own bail of £500.

She also
ordered him to appear before the higher court on September
8.

At the time of
the allegations, Stroud was a maths teacher and vice principal at
Hunterhouse College in south Belfast.

Judge Watters
reserved the granting of legal aid after receiving details of the
defendant's income and expenses.

ANON
Jun 14th, 2016 @ 12:27 PM

Child porn
accused ‘fears for his life’…

A man whose
mother reported him to gardaí after finding child pornography on
his phone has asked to be put into custody because he fears for his
life.

Liam Corr, aged
21, was granted bail in April pending sentence at the end of this
month.

However, his
barrister made an emergency application yesterday and told the
court that Corr believed he was in immediate danger due to the
nature of the charges against him.

Sandra Frayne,
defending, told Dublin Circuit Criminal Court that Corr had been
staying in a hostel and “he heard something today which caused him
to believe he was in imminent threat of being harmed”.

She said he
came straight to his solicitor’s office and asked that the
application be made.

Ms Frayne said
that it has come to a point where he couldn’t stay at the hostel
and he had nowhere else to go. His mother was aware of the
situation.

Judge Melanie
Greally said she was considering imposing a custodial sentence on
Corr when his matter was due to be heard on June 26.

Gardaí
believe they may have solved the mystery of the disappearance of
Philip Cairns, the 13-year-old schoolboy who went missing in Dublin
nearly 30 years ago. A woman came forward last month with new
information which detectives believe to be credible. The woman told
gardaí that the convicted paedophile Eamon Cooke may have killed
the child at the studios of his pirate radio station in October
1986.

The 79-year-old
died last week and while he confirmed some aspects of the woman’s
statement, he never told the gardaí where the child’s remains are
buried - in spite of their efforts to have him do so. Philip
Cairns’ family have been informed of the latest developments but
the case remains open and gardaí are still appealing for
information. Philip disappeared on the afternoon of 23 October 1986
while walking back to Coláiste Éanna school where he had been a
first-year student for just over a month. Six days later his
schoolbag was found dumped in a laneway yards from his home on the
Ballyroan Road in Rathfarnham. Last month a woman came forward to
gardaí with new information.

The woman told
detectives that on the day Philip disappeared, she was in a car
with Cooke - the DJ and owner of the pirate radio station, Radio
Dublin. The woman told the gardaí that Cooke knew Philip and had
promised to take him to visit the radio station. She said however
that when they got to the studios in Inchicore, a row broke out
while she was in another room, and that Cooke struck the child with
an implement. She said she went into the room and saw the
13-year-old boy bleeding and unconscious on the floor. She told
gardaí that she then fainted and when she woke up, she was in a car
being driven by Cooke. She kept this information to herself for
decades.Cooke (above)
died last week. The 79-year-old was a convicted paedophile who was
serving a 10-year sentence for repeatedly sexually abusing two
girls from January 1974 to May 1978.

The offences
were committed years before Philip disappeared. By the time gardaí
could act on the new information they received, Cooke was a dying
man. They went to see him in Arbour Hill Prison but discovered he
had been transferred to a Dublin hospice. They spoke to Cooke at
the hospice on a number of occasions but because of his condition
and the fact that he was receiving palliative care he could not be
questioned or interrogated fully.

He gave yes/no
answers and, to a limited extent, confirmed aspects of the
statement made to

from 2002:
ON THE afternoon of Friday, October 23, 1986, young Philip Cairns
left his home after a lunch break and set off back towards school.
It was an ordinary day, with no reason to think anything might
deflect the Dublin schoolboy from the short journey he had taken
each day since school began six weeks before. His grandmother waved
to him as he left, and the 13-year-old turned and shouted back
before he disappeared from view. As the day wore on, a devastating
nightmare began. Philip never arrived at his school desk. The
schoolboy from Ballyroan Road in Rathfarnham has not been seen
since, and his body has never been found.

Sixteen years
since Philip's disappearance baffled both relatives and gardai, a
re-examination of the case shows he was probably murdered by a
paedophile. It is believed others were involved, and that Philip
was killed to cover the tracks of the men after making a complaint
about abuse. The man he told, it is believed, became an accomplice
in his death.

Today, Philip's
father confirms his belief that a paedophile was responsible for
his son's death. What worries him most, he says, is the fate Philip
suffered before his death.

Initial
searches of the Rathfarnham area after Philip vanished seemed to
yield few clues. Local residents joined gardai in the hunt.
Hundreds of sightings were reported but none was ever
confirmed.

No physical
evidence was found until the Wednesday of the following week, when
Philip's school bag was spotted in a lane close to his school. It
was thought the boy's abductor, anxious to be rid of vital
evidence, had placed it there, as the lane had been extensively
searched several days before and nothing found. Some officers
wondered whether the bag had been dropped as a tactic to divert the
police.

Investigations
by the Sunday Independent have now pieced together the story of
Philip Cairns's last hours. The facts convince his father, though
it is unlikely he will ever know the comfort of full confirmation.
The site where Philip's body was dumped a pond in convent grounds
has since been developed.

It is now
believed Philip was murdered on the day of his abduction, and that
this was done to prevent him exposing that he had been a victim of
abuse by a trusted person outside his family. The boy had told his
story to a person in the locality, wanting the abuse to be exposed.
Unwittingly, in doing so, Philip signed his own death
warrant.

ANON
Jun 10th, 2016 @ 01:00 PM

116 new
Church sex abuse allegations…

A total of 116
new allegations of sexual abuse were reported to the Catholic
Church’s National Board for Safeguarding Children from last April
to March 2016.

There were 65
allegations made against diocesan priests and 51 were reported in
relation to religious priests and Brothers and
Sisters.

Separately,
there were 37 allegations of emotional and physical abuse against
one religious congregation.

The majority of
the abuse reported in this period of April 2015 to March 2016,
related to incidences that took place in the 1960s, 1970s and
1980s.

There was also
an incident of alleged abuse that took place in 2015.

“This one case
[2015] deserves particular mention as it happened so recently,
demonstrating that a risk to children still exists,” the report
published said.

Overall, there
was an increase in allegations made against diocesan priests from
58 in the last report to this year’s 65.

In relation to
criminal investigations arising out of the allegations, victims did
not proceed with their complaints to policing bodies.

“As has been
noted in previous years, most complainants do not proceed to make
statements to An Garda Síochána or the PSNI, and therefore there
are few criminal investigations and consequent prosecutions,” read
the report.

Chief executive
of the board, Teresa Devlin said many people who report allegations
of abuse end up feeling dissatisfied.

“It is
recognised that many complainants feel dissatisfied with the
response they receive when they come forward with an allegation of
abuse.

“Further work
on this initiative will take place in 2016, when complainants’
views will be sought prior to any final guidance being published,”
Ms Devlin said.

A man who
sexually assaulted his four young daughters in a “horror of a home”
has been jailed for four and a half years.

Judge Patrick
McCartan said Co Mayo native Bernard Cunningham (66) had never
shown any remorse for subjecting his children to “unspeakable
mental and physical cruelty”.

Last April a
jury at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court returned unanimous guilty
verdicts on eight charges of indecent and sexual assault committed
between 1978 and 1992.Cunningham of
Royston, Kimmage Road West, Dublin had pleaded not guilty to the
charges.

At his sentence
hearing Judge McCartan noted how Cunningham had met the case by
instructing his lawyers to put it to his daughters that they were
lying.

He noted the
“absolute absence of any remorse” and said the victims had been
subjected to the most protracted and careful probing during
cross-examination of their testimony.

The women have
waived their right to anonymity so that their father can be
identified.

The eldest
daughter, who was the first and youngest victim, was subjected to
the most serious of abuse, the court heard. Cunningham began
abusing her in the late 1970s when she was about five years
old.

ANONA Jun 10th,
2016 @ 12:55 PM

2/2..‘Powerful
bully’….

He took her
into his bedroom and undressed himself and simulated sex between
her legs. She described her father as a “very violent man” and a
“manipulative, powerful bully”.

She said he was
a “street angel, house devil” who would brainwash
people.

She told
Gerardine Small BL, prosecuting, that Cunningham was “the nicest
person to anyone looking in” but behind closed doors he was
drinking heavily and would get great enjoyment out of seeing his
daughter crying and making inappropriate comments when she was
physically developing.

A number of
references from Mayo people who know Cunningham and knew about his
convictions described him as a kind and compassionate
man.

His partner of
19 years, who continues to support him, told the court that he was
a kind man who cared for her dying brother.

Judge McCartan
said that although the referees were well meaning, he could not
marry their comments to the evidence of Cunningham’s
cruelty.

He said the
victims were reared in a “horror of a home” where because of their
father’s drinking they were subjected to “sustained abuse,
physical, mental and sexual”.

He said in the
absence of one word of apology or remorse it was difficult to show
the mercy that someone of his age might otherwise
deserve.

One woman told
the court that she had suffered from bulimia, self-harm and mental
health problems as a result of the abuse

ANON
Jun 8th, 2016 @ 10:59 AM

1/2...The
inquiry is focusing on abuse at the Kincora Boys'
Home…

A former
resident from Kincora Boys' Home has described being stripped naked
and sexually assaulted on his first day at the Belfast
facility.

The man, given
the cipher HIA199/R3, broke down in tears, after telling the
Historical Institutional Abuse (HIA) Inquiry, how he was singled
out and abused over four years.

He said: "When
I came to Kincora was an an innocent 14-year-old boy.

"I never had a
sex education and this is what I had to deal with for four
years."

The witness,
who spent his entire childhood in care, had three separate stints
at Kincora during the 1960s and 1970s.

He left shortly
after turning 18.

On the day he
was admitted from Purdysburn Hospital, he recalled being taken into
a bathroom and assaulted by warden Joseph Mains during what was
supposed to be a medical examination, the HIA was
told.

The first thing
he did to me was he took me into that bathroom, he stripped me
naked, made a comment about my private parts and started to fondle
me," he said.

"That was on my
first day at 14."

There was
systemic abuse with rewards and violent punishments such as being
punched in the stomach or slapped in the face if he did not
perform, it was claimed.

He added: "The
punishment was cleverly worked out so that there would not be any
bruising.

"It was done in
private, in his office. It wouldn't happen very often but it would
be often enough to remind me of the consequences if I did not
perform."

The boy, who
considered Kincora the only home he ever had, was threatened with
borstal and feared speaking out because of Mains' influential
friends, it emerged.Mains later
pleaded guilty to two counts of sex abuse against the
boy.

ANON
Jun 8th, 2016 @ 10:52 AM

2/2...It has
long been alleged that a high ranking paedophile ring preyed on
vulnerable boys at Kincora during the 1970s.

It is further
claimed that the UK security services knew about the abuse but did
nothing, instead using the information to blackmail the prominent
people such as politicians, judges, civil servants and police
officers who were the perpetrators.

In 1980, Mains
and two other senior care workers Raymond Semple and William
McGrath were convicted for abusing boys at Kincora during the
1970s.

It was widely
believed McGrath, who had links to a shadowy Protestant
paramilitary organisation, was working as an MI5
agent.

HIA199/R3 said
he had no knowledge of any vice ring or of boys being taken
elsewhere to be prostituted.

The witness
said he was glad to have the opportunity to speak out.

"For 55 years I
have had this hanging on my head," he said.

"No one
believed me. I am just so glad for this committee, at last, to
listen to the truth of what happened at Kincora."

The HIA was set
up by the Northern Ireland Executive in 2013 and has been examining
allegations of physical, emotional and sexual abuse at state and
church-run residential institutions between 1922 and
1995.

It is chaired
by retired High Court Judge Sir Anthony Hart, sitting alongside
Geraldine Doherty, a former head of the Central Council for
Education and Training in Social Work in Scotland, and David Lane,
who was director of social services in Wakefield, West
Yorkshire.

ANON
Jun 7th, 2016 @ 08:02 PM

1/2...Six-year sentence for
man who raped two children….

An 18-year-old
man who raped and sexually assaulted two children, one of whom has
Down Syndrome, has been jailed for six years.

The Central
Criminal Court heard that in August 2014 he admitted to twice
raping and once threatening to kill his first victim an 11-year-old
boy but later went on to rape a teenage girl who has Down
Syndrome.

The man pleaded
guilty to four counts of rape, one count of threatening to kill and
one count of sexual assault between June 2013 and December
2014.

Mr Justice
Patrick McCarthy said the offences were "of the utmost gravity"
when committed on children, especially one with a
disability.

He also noted
the man had threatened to kill one of the children to prevent him
reporting the crime.

The first
victim has speech and language and developmental
difficulties.

His mother was
made aware of the rape when her son's friend told her in July
2014.

The attack
occurred when the boys were playing in a field and their ball went
into a ditch.The accused man
raped the boy and did not speak to him during the
attack.

However he
threatened to kill him if he told anyone.

In a victim
impact statement the woman told the court she noticed a change in
behaviour in her son from 2013 when he started taking extra showers
and excessively washing himself.

He later told
her he had been raped.

The mother said
a permanent scar had been left on her son and he was now undergoing
treatment and lashes out.

She said he was
not the son she remembers from a few years ago.

"He was ten
years of age when he was first raped and 11 when he was raped for
the second time.

I feel he will
never recover from this.

I feel helpless
and guilty and that I should have noticed something was wrong with
him the previous year," the mother stated in a victim impact report
stated.

ANON
Jun 7th, 2016 @ 07:57 PM

2/2...The
accused man voluntarily went to a garda station on 18 August 2014
with his mother where he made full admissions to raping the boy on
two occasions.

The second
victim was a girl with Down Syndrome.

On April 5 2015
her mother was helping her shower when she heard her daughter say
the accused had kissed her.

Prosecuting
counsel told the court the teenager has said the accused man had
put his tongue in her mouth and she did not like it.

The accused
knew the victim for a while and he told her she was his boyfriend
so she would not tell anyone.

The court heard
he knew she had special needs.

In their victim
impact statement the girl's parents said their daughter's "loving
nature" had been "snapped away from her" by a person who knew her
circumstances, disability and routine.

"He knew what
he was doing and the damage he would do. She is self-harming now a
lot and has a total distrust of the male sex. Our hearts have been
ripped apart."

Defence counsel
Brendan Grehan SC, said his client was 15 years old when he began
offending. He has no previous convictions and has since attempted
to take his own life as a result of his shame and
disgust.

His parents
disowned him when he made full admissions.

Counsel told
the court he was instructed to apologise unreservedly to the court
for his client's behaviour.

The court heard
that medical personnel who had treated him described him as being
naïve and of an immature disposition.

Counsel said
that while he is doing well in jail there are concerns about the
process that is in place for when he ultimately leaves
prison.

Justice
McCarthy sentenced the defendant to three years for the offences on
each victim to run consecutively and ordered he undergoes five
years post-release supervision and undertake sexual offenders
therapeutic courses.

ANONjun 6th,
2016 @ 12:46 PM

1/2...State
urged to expand foster home inquiry…

The new
Government has been urged to expand the planned Grace foster home
sexual abuse inquiry into a full-blown review of Ireland’s foster
care services due to fears the investigation will be “too narrow”
to uncover “systemic” problems crippling the system.

Fine Gael
backbench TD John Deasy, who has been central to highlighting the
case and forcing an inquiry to be launched, made the claim as he
warned similar scandals may be happening around the country because
of severe staff shortages in the service.

Speaking to the
Irish Examiner as it emerged the Conor Dignam review on which the
planned commission of investigation’s terms of reference will be
based is due to be completed in days and after a separate HSE and
Tusla review into another foster abuse case in Cork was launched
last month, Mr Deasy said he welcomes any progress in finding out
what happened in the south east.

However, the
vice-chair of the previous Dáil’s public accounts committee said
unless a wider examination of the entire foster care system also
occurs in tandem with the inquiry, any investigation will fail to
highlight similarly concerning cases in other parts of the
country.

“There
absolutely needs to be a broadening [of Mr Dignam’s terms of
reference], there is no doubt about that,” Mr Deasy
said.

“When the
report started, we didn’t think the terms of reference were broad
enough to take in all the issues regarding foster care, the HSE and
the alleged abuses [involving ‘Grace’ and ‘Anne’ in the south east
home].

“That was no
fault of Mr Dignam. But since then [the launch of the initial
Dignam review last year] a lot more has happened.

The HSE has
issued apologies to the families involved, they have admitted there
were failures across the board.

ANON
Jun 6th, 2016 @ 12:44 PM

2/2“..The
only issue here is how expansive this commission will be in
relation to foster care.

“There are
issues with resourcing throughout the whole disability sector which
leave vulnerable children at risk because they are not checked on
for years, other cases have come to the surface.

“So really
there is a need to make sure the inquiry also encompasses the whole
foster care area.

I think it’s
reasonable that at this point we go beyond looking at one specific
case,” he said.

Mr Deasy said
that other than the high-profile allegations of a cov

cover-up by
senior health service management of the south east foster abuse
case, other issues central to it involve “the entire foster care
area”.

He said it is
vital any examination of the case not only focusses on what
happened to Grace and Anne but also investigates “whether or not
there was a systemic problem as opposed to isolated
cases”.

Mr Deasy said
he and Fianna Fáil TD John McGuinness who was also central to
highlighting the abuse allegations and forcing an inquiry to be
launched are willing to meet with new super junior minister for
disabilities Finian McGrath to discuss their concerns and
proposals.

While stressing
Mr McGrath “needs a bit of time to study the materials because
there’s a lot in it”, he said both TDs want to meet with the
Independent Alliance member to explain the need to widen the
investigation if necessary.

“I think at
some point, when he is ready and has absorbed the facts, it would
be useful to meet and give our take on what we think about
it.

“It would be
once the Dignam report has been released,” he said

ANON
Jun 6th, 2016 @ 12:33 PM

1/2...Staff
in ‘Grace’ abuse case still in jobs…

Senior child
protection staff in the ‘Grace’ foster home sex abuse scandal have
yet to be risk assessed or moved from their positions because legal
red tape is preventing the HSE from “inappropriately” identifying
them.

The Irish
Examiner has learned the complex legal situation is blocking the
possibility of examining whether the individuals pose any potential
risks to other children, four months after their names were first
sought by child protection watchdog Tusla.

During a Dáil
meeting last February, HSE director general Tony O’Brien confirmed
that senior Tusla staff were involved in the ‘Grace’ controversy
while working with the South Eastern Health Board in the
1990s.

As previously
reported by this newspaper, the case involves claims a woman with
severe intellectual disabilities called ‘Grace’ suffered sexual
abuse at a foster home between the late 1980s and
2009.

While all
placements with the family were meant to end in 1995, ‘Grace’
continued to stay at the home until 2009 while a second woman
called ‘Anne’ stayed for respite care until 2013.

As a result of
Mr O Brien’s comments in February, Tusla requested the names of the
individuals involved in order to ensure there was no risk to other
children in its care.

This
information was sought because of allegations made under Dáil
privilege that senior South Eastern Health Board officials failed
to remove ‘Grace’ in 1995 and then attempted to cover up the
situation when it emerged in 2009.

However, in a
statement to the Irish Examiner, a spokesperson for the child
protection group said because of ongoing legal difficulties the HSE
has been unable to provide it with the names meaning no “risk
assessment” has taken place.

ANON
Jun 6th, 2016 @ 12:30 PM

2/2“...The
information furnished by the HSE on the handling of the case of the
woman known as ‘Grace’ did not include the names of the staff
members involved, due to the Garda investigation.

“The primary
concern for Tusla and the HSE is to ensure no child is put at risk
while the investigation is ongoing.

“Legal advice
has been sought in order to identify a solution that would allow
Tusla to conduct a risk assessment of the staff and, if necessary,
to ensure appropriate safeguards are in place without adversely
affecting the ongoing garda investigations,” the spokesperson
said.

It is
understood that while Tusla has been unable to carry out any risk
assessment, its own internal structures mean no one individual has
sole control over any case file.

.In a statement
, a HSE spokesperson said the organisation is prevented from
sharing the information due to ongoing “live” Garda investigations:
“The Conal Devine and Resilience Ireland reports, with permission
of An Garda Síochána, have been provided to Tusla.

“The HSE has
sought permission from An Garda Síochána that the actual names of
the individuals could be provided to Tusla in circumstances where
Conal Devine presented those names in an anonymised
format.

“The HSE is
willing to provide the identification key used in the Conal Devine
Report to Tusla once An Garda Síochána has given permission for
this to happen.”

A report
central to establishing a promised commission of inquiry into the
case will be finished in the coming days.

The Irish
Examiner understands senior counsel Conor Dignam who has spent a
year examining the Conal Devine and Resilience Ireland reports, and
cover-up claims made in the Dáil is due to provide his findings to
Health Minister Simon Harris and Disability Minister Finian
McGrath

ANON
Jun 4th, 2016 @ 05:47 PM

Bishops
guilty of "negligence" in dealing with sexual abuse of minors in
the Catholic Church can be dismissed, Pope Francis decreed this
morning.

The decree
quoted the pontiff as saying that such cases would fall under an
existingproviso in
canon law allowing for prelates to be sacked for "serious
reasons".

"I intend to
specify that among these so-called 'serious reasons' is the
negligence of bishops in the exercise of their functions,
especially in cases of sexual abuse of minors or vulnerable
adults," the Pope wrote.

Vatican
spokesman Federico Lombardi said the Pope also set up a body of
lawyers to assist him in decisions that could require the dismissal
of a bishop.

In the decree,
an apostolic letter with a status in Latin called "motu proprio"
("on his own impulse", the Pope emphasised that the church "loves
all its sons, but cares for and protects with special attention
those who are weakest and defenceless".This is why
priests, and especially bishops, should demonstrate "particular
diligence in protecting the weakest among those who are entrusted
to them," the Pope said.

A string of
historic paedophilia cases in North America and Europe has
unleashed widespread criticism of the Catholic hierarchy, including
allegations that in some cases bishops were aware of sexual
predators among the priesthood but failed to curb
them.

Pope Francis
took office promising a crackdown on cover-ups and a zero-tolerance
approach to abuse itself, which he described as being akin to
taking part in a Satanic mass.

It is
understood that the inquiry was initiated after a recent report to
the Garda, and parishioners have been informed.

A Galway-based
parish priest has taken leave of absence from regular duties,
pending the outcome of an inquiry into a child safety
issue.

Bishop of
Galway Dr Martin Drennan has confirmed that the priest stood aside
voluntarily in line with diocesan policy, while the inquiry is
underway.

It is
understood that the inquiry was initiated after a recent report to
the Garda, and parishioners have been informed.

Dr Drennan said
that anyone with information or concerns about safeguarding of
children should contact the designated diocesan liaison personnel,
the Health Service Executive or the Garda.

ANON
Jun 4th, 2016 @ 12:29 PM

Kincora
Boys' Home: Young residents 'abused within weeks of
arriving'…

Some boys sent
to Kincora children's home were sexually assaulted by
housemaster

William McGrath
just weeks after arriving, an inquiry has heard.

Allegations of
child abuse at the east Belfast home are being examined by Northern
Ireland's Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry
(HIA).

It has heard
harrowing statements given to police in the 1980s which ultimately
led to McGrath's prosecution.

It was told
boys warned new residents about McGrath as they
arrived.Victims
described how McGrath would wake them up by touching them
inappropriately.

Others told
detectives he followed them to the bathroom and assaulted them
there.

Rumours

One victim,
referred to during the inquiry as KIN49, said: "Boys warned new
boys that McGrath would try to touch them."

Some boys
described being scared of McGrath and his links to loyalist
paramilitaries.

Three senior
staff at Kincora William McGrath, Raymond Semple and Joseph Mains
were jailed in 1981 for abusing 11 boys.

There have been
persistent rumours that boys at Kincora were prostituted as part of
a high-ranking vice ring involving prominent public
figures.

However, none
of those whose statements have been read to the inquiry so far,
have said they were aware of any such practice at
Kincora.

A man, referred
to as R10, who spent four years at the home from 1973 to 1977,
said: "I did not know of any politicians, police officers, justices
of the peace, businessmen or civil servants being involved in any
way at all with the hostel, staff or boys."

ANON
Jun 4th, 2016 @ 12:27 PM

CAN YOU
HELP?....Gardaí are concerned for a 14-year-old girl missing since
Tuesday…

Gardaí have
issued an appeal for help locating a missing 14-year-old
girl.

Karla O'Reilly
was last seen in Ballivor shortly after midnight on
Tuesday.

She is
described as being 5'8" in height, brown hair with blonde ends and
blue eyes.When last seen
she was wearing a grey hoodie.

Gardai in Trim,
Co. Meath have sought the public’s assistance in tracing her
whereabouts.

A spokesman
said: "Gardaí are concerned for Karla and asking for anyone who has
seen her or who can assist in location her is asked to contact Trim
Garda Station on 046 9481540, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800
666 111 or any Garda Station."

ANON
Jun 4th, 2016 @ 12:24 PM

A number of
the children were airlifted to Tallaght Hospital…

A man has been
arrested following a serious assault of four children in Co Wicklow
on Friday night.

Gardaí and
emergency services were called to a house in the Blainroe area at
7.30pm, where they discovered four children who were all described
as being in a serious condition following the assault.

The children,
aged between 3 and 11, were taken to Tallaght Hospital for
treatment, and two had to be airlifted.

Gardaí have not
disclosed the nature of the incident and could not give details of
their injuries.

A man in his
30s was arrested soon afterwards and is currently being detained at
Wicklow Garda Station. The scene has been preserved for a technical
examination

ANON
Jun 3rd, 2016 @ 06:28 PM

1/2…Man
sentenced to 21 years for sexual abuse of stepsons…

A Wicklow man
who raped and sexually assaulted two of his step-sons hundreds of
times over a ten year period has been sentenced to 21 years in
prison with the final seven suspended.

The 51-year-old
also had his friend sexually abuse one of the boys and abused both
of them in front of another male relative.

He sometimes
made the boys commit incest with each other.

On handing down
the sentence, Mr Justice Tony Hunt said: "There was harrowing
evidence of industrial quantities, which had a profound and
long-lasting effect on both boys."

He said both
victims gave "sad and moving evidence" and "the effect of the
crimes and the resulting damage has been permanent and irreparable
for both."

One of the boys
told the court he did not know how many times the accused abused
him.

"It seemed like
millions of time," one victim said. "Some people had cereal for
breakfast, I seemed to be molested for breakfast."

The court heard
the man used a device of his own creation to abuse one
child.

The victims
have told the court they wish to waive their anonymity so their
step-father can be named publicly.

However, Mr
Justice Tony Hunt said the anonymity orders remain in place for the
time being but that a formal application can be made to have the
restrictions lifted at a later date.

The man pleaded
guilty at the Central Criminal Court to 165 counts of rape and
sexual assault against one boy and 40 similar offences against his
brother between 1993 and 2003 at his Wicklow home.

During
interviews with gardaí he accepted that he was a "paedophile
rapist" and described his offending as "shameful, horrendous,
appalling, diabolical".

The elder
victim went to gardaí last year and told them he had been abused
since the age of nine when the accused moved in with
them.

ANON
Jun 3rd, 2016 @ 06:25 PM

2/2...It
began with the man masturbating the victim and having the child do
the same to him.

The man would
do this every time he got the chance and it could occur up to three
of four times a day.

It became so
frequent that the accused did not need to say anything, he would
simply nod or gesture when he wanted to abuse the
child.

He then
progressed to raping the boy anally and orally.

At one point
the boy decided to kill himself but stopped because he "didn't want
him (the defendant) to win."

On one occasion
he brought the boy to his friend's house where both he and his
friend molested him.

The boy said he
saw the accused smile at his friend during the abuse "as if to say
'look what I can get him to do.'"

On another date
he abused both boys in front of another relative before having sex
with the relative and telling the children that "this is how it's
done."

The elder
victim told gardaí that he always abused him when his mother was in
the house. "I think he used to get off on the thrill of nearly
getting caught," he said.

He said the man
would have the two boys perform sexual acts on each other while he
watched. The accused also told the elder boy he could get him money
if he was willing for perform such acts with other
men.

"I used to feel
sorry for (the accused)," the eldest victim told gardaí. "I used to
think it happened to him and now it was happening to
me."

The man began
abusing the younger victim from when he was seven years
old.

He said this
started with masturbation and led to rape as he got older. He said
he felt like he was abused "millions of times."

Sometimes
afterwards the man would give him money and tell him to go and
play.

The accused was
arrested last year and made admissions in interview but initially
denied rape. He said the abuse started because he was having
marriage difficulties and was not having sex with his
wife.

Mr Justice Hunt
ordered that the defendant be placed under the supervision of the
Probation Services for five years post-release, undergo
rehabilitation and to have no contact whatsoever, directly or
indirectly with the two victims.

Social workers
were told of sex abuse allegations at the former Kincora Boys' Home
as early as 1967, a public inquiry has heard.

The Historical
Institutional (HIA) Abuse Inquiry was shown a handwritten letter
sent to the Belfast Welfare Authority in which it was claimed boys
were being regularly assaulted by the house warden Joseph
Mains.

The letter,
dated September 1967 also described how one boy, known only as R5,
was sent to bed early, made to scrub floors and work in the garden
for rejecting Mains' advances.

R5 wrote: "I
first realised something was wrong as far as Mr Mains was
concerned.

"Very often
when boys were washing he would come into the washroom and put his
arms around our chests and hold us tightly to him.

"Also,
sometimes as boys walked past him in the home he would touch them
up."The long
running inquiry, at Banbridge Courthouse, is examining allegations
of state sponsored child prostitution, blackmail and cover
up.

here have been
persistent allegations that a high-ranking paedophile ring preyed
on vulnerable teenage boys at Kincora during the
1970s.

It is further
alleged that the UK security services knew about the abuse but did
nothing to stop it, instead using the information to blackmail and
extract intelligence from the influential men, including senior
politicians, who were the perpetrators.

In a statement
given to police in the 1980s, R5 recalled how Mains had become
jittery, frightened and offered him cigarettes and possibly money
when he heard that the complaint had been lodged with the
authorities.

It also emerged
that another boy reported allegations of child sex abuse in two
detailed letters in 1971.

The five-page
documents, also shown to the inquiry, were delivered to the Belfast
Welfare Authority and to the office of a social worker with a
reference that they should be handed into a central police
station.

However, Joseph
Aiken, counsel to the HIA said the reference to give the letter to
police was "missed" and detectives did not receive the information
until 1976.

ANON
Jun 3rd, 2016 @ 11:30 AM

2/2...In
1981, Mains and two other senior care workers, deputy warden
Raymond Semple and house-master William McGrath were convicted for
abusing boys at Kincora during the 1970s.

A year later, a
detective from Sussex Police, who had been looking into the
allegations of a paedophile ring said many of the residents had
been "sexually naive youngsters".

"It is
difficult for an investigator to believe that persons in authority
did not know or suspect what was taking place," the detective
noted.

Statements from
a number of boys who were placed in Kincora during the 1960s were
put to the inquiry throughout the day.

Although they
included graphic details of extent of the abuse by staff members,
none claimed to have been aware of of a vice-ring.

One boy,
referred to as R7, who was abused at the age of 16, said: "I was
not aware of any prostitution or vice ring or important people
being involved.

"The only
homosexual behaviour I know of at the hostel concerned Joseph Mains
and Raymond Semple," he said.

Another, given
the cipher B3/R1 said: "I have no knowledge of politicians, police
or such people involved in any such activity.

"When I read of
the goings on, I was very surprised. I knew nothing of prostitution
and homosexual relations with fellas outside the hostel. If it was
happening there I would have known of it."

Some boys
described being abused while bathing or changing while others said
it happened on an almost daily basis.

There was also
abuse among peers, the inquiry heard.

Another
ex-resident, known only as R4, said he had grown used to being
assaulted by Mains but did not like it and feared speaking
out.

On Wednesday,
the inquiry was told that MI5, MI6 and the Ministry of Defence
could find no evidence that officials were involved in, condoned or
exploited the sex abuse at Kincora.

Outside the
court, solicitor Claire McKeegan, who is acting for a number of
victims, said the claims would be treated with
caution.

"We look
forward to hearing full and detailed evidence of exactly what
agencies of the state knew and when they knew it," she
said.

The inquiry
continues.

anon
Jun 2nd, 2016 @ 10:52 PM

CAN YOU
HELP?...

Gardai appeal
for helping in finding missing teenager (15)…

Gardai are
seeking the public's help in tracing a teenager who has been
missing since last Sunday night.

David Doyle
(15) was last seen in Swords at around 8pm on Sunday
evening.

He is described
as being 5'7" in height, dyed red hair, blue eyes.

When last seen
he was wearing black jeans, navy hoodie, white T-shirt and blue
runners.

Gardaí are
concerned for David and asking for anyone who has seen him or who
can assist in location him is asked to contact Swords Garda Station
on 01 6664700, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any
Garda Station.

A former aide
to Prime Minister David Cameron, Patrick Rock, has been given a
two-year conditional discharge over indecent images of
children.

The ex-deputy
director of policy at Downing Street was convicted on Wednesday of
five charges and acquitted of three similar counts.

The jury was
unable to reach a verdict on the remaining 12 charges.

Rock, 65, had
admitted downloading 20 images of nine young girls in 2013, but
denied they were indecent.

Although he
will not serve time in prison, Judge Alistair McCreath said Rock's
punishment was "the loss of your reputation and your very public
humiliation".

"I have not
lost sight of the obvious reality that right-thinking people will
quite properly consider that those who did what you did should be
punished for it.

"You should
be.

And you have
been It is a punishment which you brought on yourself, but is
nonetheless a very real one. And it is one that is utterly
merited."

The court heard
that the youngest of the girls in the pictures was aged just 10
years and four months when he downloaded the image meaning she
would have been younger when it was taken.

Rock must
register as a sex offender for two years and was also banned from
using a device with the internet unless it can retain his browsing
history and he surrenders it for inspection by police over the same
period.

anon
Jun 2nd, 2016 @ 10:50 PM

1/2...Former
Kincora Boys’ Home resident hopes inquiry will lead to
truthInquiry
chairman says organisations such as MI5, MI6 and RUC will be
investigated

A man who was
allegedly sexually abused as a teenager when staying at the Kincora
Boys’ Home in east Belfast said he hoped the inquiry into the home
will prove there was an official cover-up of the
abuse.

Clint Massey,
who is due to give evidence next week, waived his right to
anonymity.

He said he was
in care at Kincora as a 16-year-old in 1973 when he was allegedly
abused.

While sexual
abuse at the home is acknowledged, the inquiry is also
investigating whether prominent people such as politicians, police
officers, civil servants and legal figures abused boys from Kincora
either in the home or brought them to hotels and other places
within the general area to be abused.

Mr Massey said
some members of Kincora staff abused him and he could not help the
inquiry into wider allegations that establishment figures used some
boys as male prostitutes.

Nonetheless, he
believed there was a cover-up and hoped it would be exposed by the
inquiry.

“The state used
us in their dirty war. We were expendable.

They had a big
picture and we were nobodies in it. We were what would be described
now as collateral damage, and that is what we were.”

The inquiry
chairman Sir Anthony Hart said the Royal Ulster Constabulary, MI6,
MI5, the British ministry of defence, the Northern Ireland Office
and the Belfast County Borough Welfare Committee and Department,
and its successor, the Eastern Health and Social Services Board,
would be investigated.

Organisations
such as the PSNI, MI5 and MI6, the Ministry of Defence and the NIO
have legal representation at the inquiry. It is not yet clear
whether anyone from MI5 or MI6 will give evidence to the
inquiry.

Dedicated web
portals to allow people to report images and videos of child sexual
abuse are being launched in 12 British overseas territories, the
Internet Watch Foundation says.

The online
reporting system is to help people who "stumble across" abuse to
report it anonymously, the IWF said.

Reporting
portals have already been set up in Mauritius and
Uganda.

Any reports
generated in the territories will be assessed and passed on to
police.

Funded by the
UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the 12 new portals are being
rolled out in: Akrotiri and Dhekelia, Anguilla, Ascension Island,
Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Gibraltar,
Montserrat, the Pitcairn Islands, Tristan da Cunha, Turks and
Caicos and St Helena.

A team of IWF
analysts will work directly with the internet industry and law
enforcement to have the abusive imagery removed.

The charity
says there has been a huge rise in the number of illegal child
abuse images appearing on the internet over the last two
years.

In 2015, the
IWF positively identified 68,092 reports of child sexual abuse
images or videos and had them removed from the
internet.

Nearly 70% of
the victims were under 11 years old and 1,788 victims were assessed
as being aged two or under.

Eddie Yome,
Commissioner of the Royal Gibraltar Police, said the rise of social
media and new technology had brought new and "very difficult
challenges".

He said: "I
cannot stress enough the importance of a joined-up approach to this
issue and as a result, we continue to focus on effective
partnership, working to ensure we are better educated and prepared
to successfully address the growing demands of the digital
age."

Mary Durham,
superintendant of the sexual offences and domestic violence unit at
the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police said the reporting portal
was a "great initiative".

She added:
"Every way and means necessary to protect our children here in the
Turks and Caicos Islands is of high importance."

anon
Jun 2nd, 2016 @ 10:49 PM

Child sex
abuse reporting portals launch in 12 UK territories

Dedicated web
portals to allow people to report images and videos of child sexual
abuse are being launched in 12 British overseas territories, the
Internet Watch Foundation says.

The online
reporting system is to help people who "stumble across" abuse to
report it anonymously, the IWF said.

Reporting
portals have already been set up in Mauritius and
Uganda.

Any reports
generated in the territories will be assessed and passed on to
police.

Funded by the
UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the 12 new portals are being
rolled out in: Akrotiri and Dhekelia, Anguilla, Ascension Island,
Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Gibraltar,
Montserrat, the Pitcairn Islands, Tristan da Cunha, Turks and
Caicos and St Helena.

A team of IWF
analysts will work directly with the internet industry and law
enforcement to have the abusive imagery removed.

The charity
says there has been a huge rise in the number of illegal child
abuse images appearing on the internet over the last two
years.

In 2015, the
IWF positively identified 68,092 reports of child sexual abuse
images or videos and had them removed from the
internet.

Nearly 70% of
the victims were under 11 years old and 1,788 victims were assessed
as being aged two or under.

Eddie Yome,
Commissioner of the Royal Gibraltar Police, said the rise of social
media and new technology had brought new and "very difficult
challenges".

He said: "I
cannot stress enough the importance of a joined-up approach to this
issue and as a result, we continue to focus on effective
partnership, working to ensure we are better educated and prepared
to successfully address the growing demands of the digital
age."

Mary Durham,
superintendant of the sexual offences and domestic violence unit at
the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police said the reporting portal
was a "great initiative".

She added:
"Every way and means necessary to protect our children here in the
Turks and Caicos Islands is of high importance."

Senior MI5 and
MI6 officers have said they have no evidence that intelligence
officers were involved in or condoned abuse at Kincora boys' home
in Belfast.

One MI6 officer
provided detailed statements to the Historical Institutional Abuse
(HIA) inquiry which is examining the extent of sexual abuse at the
home before it closed in 1980.

Three former
staff at Kincora were jailed in 1981 for abusing boys.

At least 29
boys were abused at Kincora between the late 1950s and early
1980s.

The inquiry has
been hearing opening remarks from Joseph Aiken QC, counsel to the
inquiry, as he outlines the evidence that will be presented to the
panel over the next four weeks.

Agents

MI6 is now
officially known as the Secret Intelligence Service
(SIS).

The MI6
officer, referred to as SIS officer A, is not named, but was
introduced to the inquiry by Alex Younger, the chief of the SIS and
the only member of its staff who ever reveals his
name.

In the
statement, SIS officer A, who is the deputy director responsible
for compliance, said he "has seen nothing to indicate any
involvement of SIS officers in abuse in Kincora boys' home or any
attempt to cover it up".

"SIS does not
exploit children or vulnerable adults for operational purposes, nor
tolerate their abuse by their staff of those that work on their
behalf including agents," his statement added.

In another
document to the inquiry, the the deputy director of MI5, he said
there is no evidence in the available documents that "such abuse
was permitted, condoned or encouraged to further any MI5
plan".

Redacted

There have been
allegations that people in positions of authority and influence
knew what was happening and that they covered it up.

Both MI5 and
MI6 have agreed to assist the inquiry and many documents have
already been handed over.

Where there
have been redactions, the inquiry panel has seen the gist of what
has been redacted before the documents are made
public.

Mr Aiken QC
told the inquiry that Ministry of Defence (MoD) cooperation with
the inquiry appeared to be good, and that he had been sent emails
from MoD staff in Whitehall on one occasion at four o'clock in the
morning.